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Wise shares fell on Thursday, October 8, after reports that the company issued incorrect tax statements to around 4,000 UK users of its Wise Asset investment service. The statements covered tax years from 2021 to 2025, and the errors could have caused affected customers to report inaccurate investment income or capital gains to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).
Investing.com reported Wise shares down 1.8% at 871.6 pence in morning trading, after a Financial Times report on the customer notifications. A later same-day Investing.com report put the decline at 2.6%, indicating the price move changed as trading continued. Wise said corrected statements had been issued and the software problem had been resolved. It was discussing a settlement with HMRC to address potential tax shortfalls and said it would compensate customers who had overpaid.
Third-party calculations affected investment figures
The error originated in software supplied by a third party, according to the reports. The software miscalculated capital gains and income associated with investments in stocks and funds. Those figures matter because UK investors may need to include them in tax returns, depending on their circumstances and applicable allowances.
Wise’s own guidance explains that customers using its Stocks or Interest features invest in units of funds, and that their tax statements can include both realised gains and income figures. The company describes those statements as informational guidance rather than tax advice, and says customers remain responsible for their overall tax returns. That general disclaimer does not resolve the specific issue for people who received incorrect figures; Wise said it had sent corrected statements to affected users.
Wise says it is addressing potential tax liabilities
Wise’s reported response has two parts: discussions with HMRC over a bulk settlement for any tax shortfalls arising from the errors, and compensation for customers who paid too much tax. The company also said the software issue had been fixed. The reports did not give a value for any potential settlement or compensation, nor did they state how many customers ultimately filed returns or paid tax based on the incorrect information.
The distinction between incorrect statements and incorrect tax payments is important. A customer’s final tax position depends on their wider income, investments and personal circumstances, so the error in a Wise statement does not by itself establish that every recipient underpaid or overpaid. The available reporting did not specify the amounts involved for individual customers or the expected cost to Wise.
Customer impact extends across several tax years
The affected period—2021 through 2025—means the issue spans multiple UK tax years, rather than a single reporting cycle. Correcting historic figures may require customers to review earlier returns as well as use the revised statements for future filings. The reports did not set out a timetable for any customer action or explain whether HMRC would contact affected users directly.
Wise’s public tax guidance notes that its statements cover only holdings through the company’s investment products; other investments and income may also affect a person’s tax return. That makes the correction process individual rather than uniform. Wise has said it is actively addressing potential liabilities, but the precise arrangements for customers and the HMRC settlement remained unclear in the reporting available on Thursday.
Trading update is scheduled for October 15
The news arrived a week before Wise’s next scheduled results event. The company’s investor-relations calendar lists its Q2 FY27 results presentation for October 15, 2026. That update is the next date on Wise’s public events calendar, but the company has not said whether it will provide a detailed account of the tax-statement incident then.
Investing.com also cited broader regulatory concerns in its account of the share decline, including a Belgian investigation and the rejection of a U.S. trust-bank charter application. Those issues provide context reported by the outlet, but the immediate catalyst identified for Thursday’s move was the disclosure about incorrect customer tax statements. The financial impact of the errors, the terms of any agreement with HMRC and the number of customers who must amend past filings were not disclosed in the reporting reviewed.
